Naming components in a way they can be found by a ruby
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I would like to get your thoughts on the best way to organise components and groups so that we have a universal way of naming components for estimating.
I have been using Sketchup for design and estimating in domestic construction for several years now. There are many rubies that can be used to take the manual work out of this but I think the main thing that makes it hard to have a universal estimating add on is: we all name & group our components differently. To do a complete house take off it is important to have all necessary model geometry grouped in the order it is required on the job : This way the necessary components (products & labour) can be taken off, ordered or scheduled in job sequence. If the components were layered as well they could be turned off when they have been documented. This way the geometry left on screen will signal items not accounted for....
The main reason for this discussion is:
1 to find out how many people use sketchup to do take offs (BOM)
2. if you have your own methods of doing this. Do you use rubies or do you do it manually?
3. to find out if any one has any suggestions on how to name or number components in such a way that they can be found and recognised easily by all sketchup users. personally i use cost codes to name my components.
4. do you export your quantities to spread sheets (excel) or note padBasically I know very little about ruby scripting so if there are any ruby enthusiasts that have any suggestions feel free to make a comment.
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If you rely on definition names any inconsistent use of your naming scheme will break your application logic and you may end up with an incomplete/inaccurate report. (Same problem as getting an entire organisation to use the company layer standards.)
It may be a better strategy to use hidden attribute tags.
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hi everyone,
I think it's only logical that we aim for doing quantity takeoffs directly from Sketchup someday.
The problem is, there is no standard in naming or assigning attributes. Basically, everyone does what he/she think is best.
without a certain standard/convention, it'll be impossible for anyone to write a universal tool to capture all components and groups created by different people.
It'll be great if we can start discussion on the direction of doing this, and if we can establish a certain convention in the end that everyone agrees, it'll a big step in moving towards a quantity takeoff tool that can capture entities that follows this convention.
I think Sketchucation's forum is a great place to start.
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Somebody once said : 'The wonderful thing about standards are that there are so many to choose from!'
It may be worth considering how such a scheme for Sketchup fits into the work done by buildinSMART (now in charge of the IFC spec):
http://www.buildingsmartalliance.org/
http://www.wbdg.org/resources/cobie.php -
Sorry double listing...
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@unknownuser said:
If you rely on definition names any inconsistent use of your naming scheme will break your application logic and you may end up with an incomplete/inaccurate report
It is difficult to get every one to name every thing the same but I guess it would be possible to at least group components ,100= say lumber (101 may be 24 102 34 (or in english 10050 or 10075mm), 200 concrete, 300 plumbing, 400 external linings & 500 roofing etc etc. how to group these simple things could not be too dififcult to get universal. Or maybe I need to sit back and have another thnk about a beter way to go...
thinking outside the box will be the key..
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There are already two well established naming conventions for Layers and by extension 'Components' etc.
AIA system:-
The American way is easy to understand for native English speakers - consists of 4 character codes with '-' between the parts which are hierarchical and sub-divide as required: a few examples...0000
WALL
WALL-EXTL
0002-WALL-INTL
0001-DOOR-EXTL
SITE-ROAD
A-SITE-ROAD-PATT-DEMO(which in turn are - to do with Level 0 things, WALLs, WALLs that are EXTernaL, Level 0002 WALLs that are INTernaL, Level 0001 DOORs that are EXTernaL, SITE ROADs etc, Architect's hatch PATTern showing the DEMOlished SITE ROADs)
The Euro/BS/CiSfB system:-
2
210
220
320
900
A958_HE-ROAD-PATT-EXTG**(these can have prefix/suffixes** to help you understand what they mean - but then it becomes AIA and everyone can ignore the first few characters ?
The examples are - 2 Primary elements, 210 external walls, 220 internal walls, 320 internal openings (doors etc), 900 external/site works, Architect's Road Hatching Existing=ROAD-hatchPATTern-EXisTinG)I know which I prefer...
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I've just started using Cutlist 4.07 an amazing free extension for doing material takeoffs from Sketchup. It will produce an Excel sheet with dimensions of each component or just enumerate the quantity of components (it will also layout cuts on sheet materials!). It works well with nested components and will only count the innermost components in nests. So for example, I built custom cabinets where each part is it's own component nested within the whole "cabinet", Cutlist will pick out all the parts and either list them as sheet materials (with dimensions and layout) or parts (without dimensions) or just as components (with dimensions and no layout) on a well organized spreadsheet.
The beauty of Cutlist is that the user can define keywords in the component name to allow it to sort properly.
This probably isn't the perfect solution for everyone, I guess what i'm really saying here is why bother with using standardized naming when a plugin can be built to adapt to any end-user naming schemes?Find Cutlist here: http://steveracz.com/joomla/content/view/45/1/
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I have been doing some home work and I tend to agree that the naming of components & materials is a task that would be very difficult to achieve across the board. I have used a previous version of cutlist and yes it is a fantastic ruby, I guess what I am looking for is some thing that will do an entire estimate (square meters, linela meters, component report and a work flow shedule all in 1 go. I know that is a big call but I dont think it is unrealistic.
I have set my sights to get there and it may take me years buy I will get there. Nothing is imposible.
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That would be a true legend among rubies! One step closer to full Sketchup BIM.
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I have been thinking about the naming of components and I dont think that the name is the key. I think the layer the component is placed on is what will solve the problem ( as per tigs suggestion . Thanks Tig) of organising components for an organised estimate (BOM). We have been working on a ruby that will actuauly take off square meters, lineal meters and componets all in 1 go. It is very efficient and will do a 5+ meg model in seconds. There are a lot of bugs and things to sort out and it is not yet ready for public consumption but I think it will be in the next couple of months or so.. fingers crossed see how I go with my busy work flow (out side Sketchup that is).
standardisation when it comes to layers a at this stage it is not important. Changing of names can be done by the individual user to suit there own needs if the UK and the US can not agree. Us damn Aussies will probably come up with some other rediculous method that will have some relation to beer some where.
I guess the main thing is the job gets done efficiently for end users.
If designers and architects dont draw custom components and use 3d warehouse or formfonts it will be necessary to re assign a layer to component anyway. The ruby I have been working on does not require standardisation as it looked as though no one would agree 100% any way.
I shall keep you all posted on my progress.
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